The Ministry of Industry has halted the transportation of toxic cadmium waste across Thailand indefinitely, following a safety incident at a depot in Tak province.
During operations on Tuesday (Apr 30), a crane’s chain snapped while transferring a large bag of cadmium tailings from a truck to another vehicle. The permanent secretary for industry, Nattapol Rangsitpol, immediately suspended all cadmium waste shipments, stating that all safety procedures must be revised before the operation can begin again.
Initially, the plan was to transport approximately 13,000 metric tonnes of cadmium waste from various factories located in Bangkok, Samut Sakhon, and Chon Buri provinces to a warehouse. From there, it was scheduled to be relocated to a permanent disposal site owned by Bound & Beyond Plc.
The safety protocols for transporting this waste include double-wrapping the bags and securing them with ropes under canvas covers on trucks. The first convoy, consisting of 10 trucks carrying 254 tonnes of cadmium tailings, left Bangkok and Samut Sakhon on Monday night and arrived in Tak the next morning. (NNT)
